Sir Mo Farah will return to the marathon distance for the first time since 2019 when he takes on the 2022 TCS London Marathon.

The multiple Olympic and world champion has confirmed he will return to the roads and race in his home-town marathon on Sunday 2 October.

Farah, who finished third in the 2018 London Marathon, will warm-up for his first marathon in more than three years by running The Big Half on Sunday 4 September, an event he has won on two occasions.

“Everyone knows how much I love the London Marathon so I’m really excited to be coming back in 2022,” said Farah, who was a pacemaker at the elite-only London Marathon in 2020. “It does seem a long time ago since I last took part in the full race in 2019 and I can’t wait to get back out there again, test myself against the best marathon runners in the world and enjoy that buzz and amazing atmosphere London creates on Marathon Day.

“I am focused on getting a good training block in between now and then. The Big Half will be a great way to test my condition and see how my training has been progressing before the marathon comes around on Sunday 2 October.”

26.2 miles on home turf

Hugh Brasher, Event Director of the TCS London Marathon, said: “We are delighted Sir Mo is coming back to race at the TCS London Marathon in October. This is his home-town race and part of his history. He won the Mini Marathon here as a teenager and we watched with pride as he went on to achieve greatness on the track before coming back to compete in the full London Marathon as he always wanted to do.

“Because of the glittering career he had on the track, it’s easy to forget the quality of his marathon record. He is the fastest British man in history over the marathon distance, he finished third at the 2018 London Marathon and won the Chicago Marathon in 2018, which, like London, is part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, the highest level of marathon racing in the world.

“Knowing the competitor Mo is, he will come into this year’s TCS London Marathon wanting to make his mark again and we can’t wait to see him back on the biggest stage.”

Farah has raced the London Marathon on three occasions. He finished eighth on his debut in 2014 (2:08:21), third in 2018 (2:06:21) and fifth in 2019 (2:05:39). His personal best and British record of 2:05:11 was set when he won the Chicago Marathon in 2018.

Big name at The Big Half

Farah has also won The Big Half – a half marathon that covers much of the first half of the London Marathon route in reverse – twice, in 2018 and 2019. The event starts close to Tower Bridge on the north side of the Thames and finishes at Cutty Sark. For more information on The Big Half, click here.

Farah is the most successful track athlete in British history, with a haul of four Olympic and six World Championship gold medals.

The full elite men’s field for the 2022 TCS London Marathon will be revealed on Thursday 7 July.